10 Gender-Swapped Versions of Famous Comic Book Characters

Rumors are swirling around the geek-o-sphere that Superman’s pal Jimmy Olsen may in fact be Jenny Olsen, and played by actress Rebecca Bueller, in this summer’s movie ‘Man of Steel.’ Fans are already freaking over the idea of Superman palling around with a woman who isn’t Lois Lane. But looking back over comic history, you’ll see tons of superheroes with female counterparts. In fact, adding a “Ms.” or “Woman” to a comic book superhero’s name is as common as maniacal supervillain laughs and characters dying and then suddenly coming back to life in the next issue.

Read on for a list of ten butt-kicking superheroes who were originally created to be the feminine counterparts to the male superheroes.

3) Supergirl

DC Comics

Kara Zor-El aka ‘Supergirl’ was created in 1959 by writer Otto Binder as a female counterpart to Superman. So DC came up with the idea for a female character who could be Superman’s cousin and who was supposed to look after Clark Kent as he grew up. However in the original comics, she was traveling at the speed of light and arrived when her baby cousin was all grown up and a superhero now. Since then have been many versions of Supergirl, all of which wore skirts that would make “leaping tall buildings in a single bound” more than a little awkward. DC finally gave her short pants a couple years back.

The only downside to their Shazam-based powers is that if both of them are using at the same time, it’s only one small percentage of the wizard’s power and that makes them a little bit weaker. The reason for her character origin is simple: back in the day, Fawcett Publications had a habit of basing new characters off of existing ones and so they pushed for Mary Marvel to become the female counterpart to Captain Marvel. Like Supergirl, she’s also been flashing the masses for years flying around in that skirt.

7) She-Hulk

Marvel Comics

Stan Lee came up with the idea for the She-Hulk after the ’70s show ‘The Incredible Hulk’ became very successful andhe was afraid they’d randomly bring in a female version of Bruce Banner. So he jumped the gun and created one himself: Jennifer Walters, the quiet cousin of Bruce Banner who works as a lawyer. She turned into the She-Hulk when Banner was forced to give her a blood transfusion because no one else around them shared her blood type. The radiation in his blood made her Hulk out but unlike her cousin, she was able to eventually gain the intelligence of her human form while she was in a green rage. Walters briefly took The Thing’s place in the Fantastic Four and eventually joined the Avengers. She’s also been known to hang out with Howard the Duck, but we don’t hold that against her.

8) Batwoman

DC Comics

First introduced in 1956, Kathy Kane joined the Batman family as a way to deflect rumors that The Caped Crusader and Robin were more than partners. (Stereotypically, she carried gadgets in her purse instead of a utility belt.) The character was successfully updated in the ’00s as Kate Kane, a Paris Hilton-type party girl who drifted aimlessly after having been discharged from the military due to her sexual orientation. But once Batman saves her life, Kate decided to channel her energy into being a vigilante. She gained a cult following as one of DC’s few openly gay characters, and has a romantic history with the former-cop-turned-crime-fighter Renee Montoya, who spent time as The Question.

9) Venus

Mirage Studios

Unlike her male counterparts the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Venus was named for the famous sculpture of the Venus de Milo, not for a Renaissance artist. Venus was also a pet turtle transformed by mutagen just like the Ninja Turtles, but Splinter didn’t realize she had been in the bowl when he brought the four male turtles home. She wandered about Chinatown and was discovered by a magician named I Chung. They eventually travelled to China but after a series of dreams where he had to help defend Splinter, I Chung revealed to Venus her true origin and she made her way back to New York. Venus eventually met up with the male Ninja Turtles and helped them fight crime.

10) Lady Punisher

Marvel Comics, Comicvine.com

The female sidekick to the Marvel character the Punisher, Lynn Michaels is a police officer turned vigilante who helpe take down both a rapist and a man named Mr. Sandeen who led an organization that liked to kidnap people and draw blood from them to use for their own nefarious purposes. While she has no special powers like Carol Danvers, Michaels is excellent at unarmed combat thanks to her years of being a police officer. She’s definitely a woman the criminals wouldn’t want to mess with. If only she didn’t have to go by the unfortunate moniker “Lady Punisher.”

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